Aaron Hartman, MDFunctional Medicine Specialist | Clinical Researcher

40% of Fibromyalgia Patients Are Told Their Pain Isn’t Real — 50% Are Treated as Drug Seeker #shorts

28 Jul 2026 · 2 min

Watch on YouTube

1:38

In this YouTube short, Dr. Aaron Hartman highlights the pervasive medical blind spot surrounding fibromyalgia, a condition affecting about 2% of the U.S. population and disproportionately impacting women (90% of sufferers, with women diagnosed seven times more often than men). He notes that patients often endure long diagnostic delays of five to seven years, during which many are gaslit, told their pain is “all in their head,” or treated as drug seekers—40% report being told their pain isn’t real and 50% report being labeled drug seekers. Dr. Hartman cites brain imaging studies showing roughly threefold increased brain inflammation in fibromyalgia patients, providing objective evidence of a physiological basis. He also connects fibromyalgia to other chronic conditions such as Lyme disease, mold exposure, and tick‑borne illnesses. The video concludes with a call for viewers to share their own experiences of being dismissed by healthcare providers to raise awareness of this overlooked condition.

Chapters

For decades, women have been told it's not real. Yet 90% of those with fibromyalgia that are suffering from it are women. Think about that for a second. You're just stressed. You're just tired. It's just bad sleep. It's just that time of your life. You're a young mom. Fibromyalgia, 90% women overlooked. And what happens? Women get gaslit. They get overlooked. They get, they It actually made you feel bad about not being able to kind of, you know, move forward, pull the pants up. Yet, it's actually a brain inflammatory condition that affects women more than men. Fibromyalgia actually affects millions of Americans, about 2% of our population. Women are 7 times more likely to be diagnosed and the patients will wait anywhere from 5 to 7 years to get their diagnosis. So, this is actually a very common thing that's commonly overlooked. And, this is perfect for a medical blind spot. These blind spots that I talk about are literally everywhere. They're literally everywhere and overlooked commonly. Brain imaging studies show that fibromyalgia patients have 3 times more inflammation in the brain. And these are objective, measurable things. 40% of fibromyalgia patients report being told it's not real, it's all in their head. And 50% report being test— being, 50% report being treated like they're drug seekers. Point is fibromyalgia, chronic pain syndromes are super common and many times related to other things like chronic Lyme, mold, tick-borne illnesses, et cetera. If you've had a story where you've been gaslit, you've been overlooked with your healthcare, I'd love to hear about below. Click share below. Well, and the goal about this is actually to share information to make, make these things kind of thing more known and more aware to people out there. Take care.